Sylvia Rodriguez Garcia[2] (born September 6, 1950) is an American lawyer and politician who has been serving as the U.S. representative for Texas's 29th congressional district since 2019. Her district covers much of eastern Houston. A member of the Democratic Party, she previously represented the 6th district in the Texas Senate.
Sylvia Garcia | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Texas's 29th district | |
| Assumed office January 3, 2019 | |
| Preceded by | Gene Green |
| Member of the Texas Senate from the 6th district | |
| In office March 11, 2013 – November 9, 2018[1] | |
| Preceded by | Mario Gallegos Jr. |
| Succeeded by | Carol Alvarado |
| Harris County Commissioner from Precinct 2 | |
| In office January 1, 2003 – January 1, 2011 | |
| Preceded by | Jim Fontento |
| Succeeded by | Jack Morman |
| 12th City Controller of Houston | |
| In office January 2, 1998 – January 1, 2003 | |
| Preceded by | Lloyd Kelly |
| Succeeded by | Judy Gray Johnson |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Sylvia Rodriguez Garcia September 6, 1950 San Diego, Texas, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Education | Texas Woman's University (BA) Texas Southern University (JD) |
| Website | House website |
Early life and education
editSylvia Rodriguez Garcia was born in San Diego, Texas,[3] and raised in Palito Blanco in west central Jim Wells County, the daughter of Luis and Antonia Rodriguez Garcia. She is the eighth of ten children.[4] Her family are Mexican Americans.[5]
After graduating from Ben Bolt-Palito Blanco High School,[3] Garcia attended Texas Woman's University on a scholarship. She graduated with a degree in social work and began a career as a social worker. She later received her Juris Doctor degree from Texas Southern University Thurgood Marshall School of Law and was licensed to practice law in Texas.[6]
Early political career
editCity of Houston
editIn the early 1980s, Houston Mayor Kathryn Whitmire appointed Garcia as presiding judge of the Houston Municipal System.[7] She served for an unprecedented five terms under two mayors.[8]
In 1998, Garcia became Houston city controller.[9]
Harris County
editGarcia was elected to the Harris County Commissioner's Court in 2002. She was the first woman and first Latina elected to that post in her own right.[6] Her precinct featured a major base of operations for NASA, the nation's largest petrochemical complex, the Houston Ship Channel and the Port of Houston, the sixth largest port in the world.[9]
In 2010, Garcia was defeated for reelection to the Harris County Commissioner's Court by Republican Jack Morman.[10]
Texas Senate
editIn 2013, Garcia defeated State Representative Carol Alvarado in a special election runoff to replace the late state Senator Mario Gallegos.[11]
Garcia took the oath of office for state senator on March 11, 2013.[12] She served on the Criminal Justice, Intergovernmental Relations, Natural Resources and Economic Development, and Transportation committees.[13] Garcia ran unopposed in the 2016 general election.[14]
U. S. House of Representatives
editElections
edit1992
editWhile still serving as a municipal judge, Garcia ran in the Democratic primary for the newly created 29th congressional seat in 1992. She finished third in the five-way primary behind City Councilman Ben Reyes and State Senator Gene Green.[15] Green won the runoff and held the seat for 26 years.
2018
editGreen announced his retirement in November 2017, and Garcia—who by then held the state senate seat Green once held—entered a crowded seven-way Democratic primary. The district was still a Democratic stronghold, and it was taken for granted that whoever won the primary would be overwhelmingly favored in November. Garcia got a significant boost when Green endorsed her, saying, "she's a legislator, and that's what a member of Congress should be."[16] She won the primary with 63% of the vote.[17] Her Republican opponent, Phillip Aronoff, used sexual harassment and wrongful termination allegations against Garcia.[18] Garcia handily won the November 6 general election. She and Veronica Escobar became the first Latina congresswomen from Texas, and Garcia is the first woman to represent the district.[19][20] Garcia is also the first Hispanic to represent a significant portion of Houston in Congress.
2020
editGarcia won reelection in 2020, defeating Republican Jaimy Blanco.
Tenure
editOn January 15, 2020, Garcia was selected as one of seven House impeachment managers who presented the impeachment case against President Donald Trump during his trial before the United States Senate.[21]
Committee assignments
editCaucus memberships
edit- Congressional Hispanic Caucus
- Congressional Equality Caucus
- Congressional Homelessness Caucus
- Congressional Progressive Caucus[22]
- Congressional Pro-Choice Caucus[23]
- Congressional Mental Health Caucus
- Congressional Social Work Caucus
- Congressional Diabetes Caucus
- Adoption Caucus
- Congressional Bipartisan HBCU Caucus[24]
- Congressional Coalition on Adoption[25]
- Congressional Caucus for the Equal Rights Amendment[26]
Electoral history
edit| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Sylvia Garcia | 11,659 | 63.2 | |
| Democratic | Tahir Javed | 3,817 | 20.7 | |
| Democratic | Roel Garcia | 1,217 | 6.6 | |
| Democratic | Hector Morales | 562 | 3.0 | |
| Democratic | Augustine H. Reyes | 524 | 2.8 | |
| Democratic | Dominique Michelle Garcia | 472 | 2.6 | |
| Democratic | Pedro Valencia | 192 | 1.1 | |
| Total votes | 18,443 | 100.0 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Sylvia Garcia | 88,188 | 75.1 | |
| Republican | Phillip Aronoff | 28,098 | 23.9 | |
| Libertarian | Cullen Burns | 1,199 | 1.0 | |
| Independent | Johnathan Garza (write-in) | 9 | 0.0 | |
| Total votes | 117,494 | 100.0 | ||
| Democratic hold | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Sylvia Garcia (incumbent) | 111,305 | 71.1 | |
| Republican | Jaimy Blanco | 42,840 | 27.4 | |
| Libertarian | Phil Kurtz | 2,328 | 1.5 | |
| Total votes | 156,473 | 100.0 | ||
| Democratic hold | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Sylvia Garcia (incumbent) | 71,837 | 71.4 | |
| Republican | Robert Schafranek | 28,765 | 28.5 | |
| Total votes | 100,602 | 100.0 | ||
| Democratic hold | ||||
Positions
editGarcia voted with President Joe Biden's stated position 100% of the time in the 117th Congress, according to a FiveThirtyEight analysis.[29]
LGBT rights
editGarcia supports the Equality Act, a bill that would expand the federal Civil Rights Act of 1964 to ban discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.[30] She voted for it in 2019.[31]
Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023
editGarcia was among the 46 Democrats who voted against final passage of the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023 in the House.[32]
Disaster relief
editIn 2024, Garcia publicly asked CenterPoint Energy why more than 1 million Houston residents were without power following the impact of Hurricane Beryl.[33]
Personal life
editGarcia is Roman Catholic.[34]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ "Resignation letter" (PDF). texas.gov. Retrieved January 30, 2024.
- ^ "Schedule a for ALL Line #'s". Archived from the original on June 23, 2019. Retrieved June 23, 2019.
- ^ a b "GARCIA, Sylvia - Biographical Information". Archived from the original on April 3, 2019. Retrieved June 23, 2019.
- ^ José Angel Gutiérrez. Oral History Interview with Sylvia García, 1999 Archived 2018-12-21 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Guadalupe, Patricia (March 6, 2019). "Rep. Sylvia García is honored with the Edward Roybal Award for Public Service". NBC News. Archived from the original on August 14, 2019. Retrieved January 24, 2020.
- ^ a b "Senator Sylvia Garcia: District 6". Texas State Senate. Archived from the original on March 9, 2013.
- ^ "History in the making in this year's election". University of Houston–Clear Lake. Archived from the original on April 20, 2013. Retrieved March 20, 2013.
- ^ "TMSL Alumni". Texas Southern University. Archived from the original on June 3, 2012.
- ^ a b "Texas State Directory". Texas State Directory. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved March 20, 2013.
- ^ "Harris County Commissioner Sylvia Garcia loses seat to political newcomer". KHOU. Archived from the original on December 8, 2010.
- ^ "Sylvia Garcia Defeats Alvarado in Senate Runoff". News 92 FM. Archived from the original on March 5, 2013.
- ^ "Sylvia Garcia, newest state senator, sworn in". KXAN. Archived from the original on March 14, 2013.
- ^ "Texas Senators". State of Texas. Archived from the original on April 25, 2017. Retrieved April 24, 2017.
- ^ "Texas 6th District State Senate Results: Sylvia Garcia Wins". The New York Times. Archived from the original on January 8, 2017. Retrieved January 7, 2017.
- ^ "1992 congressional primary". Archived from the original on March 8, 2018. Retrieved March 8, 2018.
- ^ Shay, Miya (March 6, 2018). "Senator Garcia expected to take Congressman Gene Green's seat in Congress". KTRK-TV. Archived from the original on March 7, 2018. Retrieved March 8, 2018.
- ^ "2018 congressional primary". Archived from the original on March 8, 2018. Retrieved March 8, 2018.
- ^ "Sexual Misconduct Allegations Against Sen. Sylvia Garcia - Full Video Release". Aronoff for Congress. Retrieved November 20, 2018.
- ^ "Veronica Escobar is closer to making House history in Texas". Elpasotimes.com. Retrieved April 27, 2018.
- ^ "Veronica Escobar on path to make Latina, Texas history after Congress primary victory". khou.com. March 12, 2018. Archived from the original on April 28, 2018. Retrieved April 27, 2018.
- ^ Wilkie, Christina (January 15, 2020). "Pelosi taps Schiff, Nadler and 5 others as Trump impeachment managers". CNBC. Archived from the original on January 15, 2020. Retrieved January 15, 2020.
- ^ "Caucus Members". Congressional Progressive Caucus. Retrieved March 29, 2021.
- ^ "Caucus Members". Congressional Pro-Choice Caucus. August 19, 2021.
- ^ "Congressional HBCU Caucus Gets Five New Members". Congressional HBCU Caucus Gets Five New Members. July 23, 2019.
- ^ "CCA Institute".
- ^ "Membership". Congressional Caucus for the Equal Rights Amendment. Retrieved September 12, 2024.
- ^ "2018 Primary Election Official Results". Texas Secretary of State. Archived from the original on March 7, 2018. Retrieved March 8, 2018.
- ^ "Texas Election Results". Texas Secretary of State. Archived from the original on March 31, 2019. Retrieved December 5, 2018.
- ^ Bycoffe, Aaron; Wiederkehr, Anna (April 22, 2021). "Does Your Member Of Congress Vote With Or Against Biden?". FiveThirtyEight. Retrieved November 15, 2023.
- ^ "House Debate on the Equality Act". C-SPAN. May 17, 2019. Archived from the original on August 4, 2019. Retrieved January 27, 2020.
- ^ "Final Vote Results for Roll Call 217". Archived from the original on May 17, 2019. Retrieved May 18, 2019.
- ^ Gans, Jared (May 31, 2023). "Republicans and Democrats who bucked party leaders by voting no". The Hill. Retrieved June 6, 2023.
- ^ Gordon, Maggie (July 10, 2024). "U.S. Rep. Garcia to CenterPoint: 'Why do we have to go through this every time we have an event?'". Houston Landing. Retrieved October 2, 2024.
- ^ Religious affiliation of members of 118th Congress (PDF) (Report). Pew Research Center. January 3, 2023. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
External links
edit
- Congresswoman Sylvia Garcia official U.S. House website
- Sylvia Garcia for Congress campaign website
